Almost a million patients undergo chronic hemodialysis, the majority of whom are in the U.S. Typically patients are connected to dialysis machinery through a needle. Since a patient's blood vessels are not able to withstand repeated access with a needle, often vascular access is provided through a polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) graft, or another biocompatible vessel like a conduit such as a bovine vein graft, etc., that is sutured to a blood vessel. About 70% of such patients require two or more dialysis vascular access replacements and/or repairs every year. The annual cost of maintaining a single patient on hemodialysis in the U.S. is about $48,000 per year. More than 30% of this cost is related to the creation and maintenance of the dialysis vascular access. One problem occurring in vascular access grafts is that the overgrowth of cells in the vascular wall occurring at the suture points can lead to occlusion. Such overgrowth is at its highest during the first six months after the implantation or the repair of the graft.